41 N.H. 546 | N.H. | 1860
“When a witness is offered as an expert, three questions necessarily arise: 1. Is the subject concerning which he is to testify, one upon which the opinion of an expert can be received ? 2. What are the qualifications necessary to entitle a witness to testify as an expert ? 8. Has the witness those qualifications ?
Experts may give their opinions upon questions of science, skill, or trade, or others of the like kind, or when the subject-matter of inquiry is such that inexperienced persons are unlikely to prove capable of forming a correct judgment upon it without such assistance, or when it so far partakes of the nature of a science as to require a course of previous habit, or study, in order to the attain-, ment of a knowledge of it; and the opinions of experts are not admissible, when the inquiry is into a subject-matter, the nature of which is not such as to require any peculiar habits or study, in order to qualify a man to understand it. 1 Gr. Ev. sec. 440; 1 Smith L. C. 286; Rochester v. Chester, 3 N. H. 349; Peterborough v. Jaffrey, 6 N. H. 462; Whipple v. Walpole, 10 N. H. 130 ; Beard v. Kirk, 11 N. H. 397; Robertson v. Stark, 15 N. H. 109; Marshall v. Ins. Co., 27 N. H. 157. Upon subjects of general knowledge, which are understood by men in general, and which a jury are presumed to be familiar with, witnesses must testify as to facts alone, and the testimony of witnesses as experts merely is not admissible. Concord Railroad v. Greely, 23 N. H. 237, 243.
Experts have been described as “ men of science,” Folkes v. Chadd, 3 Doug. 157; “ persons professionally acquainted with the science or practice,” Strickland on Ev. 408; “ conversant with the subject-matter,” Best’s Principles of Evidence, sec. 346; “persons of skill,” Rochester v. Chester, 3 N. H. 349, 365 ; “ experienced persons,” Peterborough v. Jaffrey, 6 N. H. 462, 464; possessed of some particular science or skill respecting the matter in question, Beard v. Kirk, 11 N. H. 397. In Barron v. Cobleigh,
The rule determining the subjects upon which experts may testify, and the rule prescribing the qualifications of experts, are matters of law; but whether a witness, offered as an expert, has those qualifications, is a questiohof fact, to be decided by the court at the trial. The various disqualifications which render a person incompetent to be
Upon a question of fact, the whole court will not revise the decision of a presiding justice, unless it is specially resexwed by him for revision, and his decision is not subject to exception. In the present case, it does not appear that the rule of law, prescribing the qualifications of an expert, was disregarded, and the judgment of the presiding justice, as to what the qualifications of the witness were, was conclusive and final.
Judgment on the verdict.